Written by SuzyQ

Oh my, so much to say and so little time. For the newbies, June is the make or break month in the MK seminar year and all of the stops are pulled out. The nsd’s may even hit the road for the special “Guest Events” that you will have to pay for, but your guests will be free, and your director will also pay and bring a beautifully wrapped gift (current products only please.) You will at the very least receive really perky email missives from your director urging to “stretch” this month.

Stretch means ordering even if you don’t need to, but it’s all for the unit! Don’t you want to see your unit become a Cadillac unit, or a top director trip unit, or a Circle of Achievement unit? Seriously, it is so way cool and your director will blow kisses to you from the seminar stage and mouth “ I love you! You are just the most awesome unit!” and golly, what a thrill that is for YOU! If your director is allowed to speak, she will thank God for these last minute miracles, although, last time you checked, it was YOUR credit card with the new charge on it.

You do know of course, everything you do for the unit only helps your director and NSD don’t you? It’s all about production and recruits. You are a cog in a wheel that you can’t control and receive no benefit. I mean, what was the view for the people rowing under the deck? That’s you. You are the fuel. When you are burned up, more fuel is obtained from another source. You are dispensable. Really. You matter so long as you order and recruit. Stop that, and you are no longer useful.

And let’s finish that star, shall we? Order more, more, more! The star prizes are worth so little compared to what you have to order to get them, but people still order the extra $600 or $1000 to “finish star.” Why? For a piece of “sapphire colored” glass in your ladder of success? (Maybe, ladder of “Sucker” would actually be more accurate.) For a cheap prize? For a name badge ribbon, that you will only receive if you go to seminar? Can you justify, rationally, realistically, adding $1,200 to your inventory? Have you been in MK long enough to try to book classes in the summer? When working parents add day care to the list of child care expenses? Have you booked and held 2 classes per week ever? Think you are going to do that this summer? You won’t. Trust me.

You can trust me because I know. I did this MK thing for 10 years, 9 as a director. I was so pink, I would have pooped pink if asked. I was a lifer. I let more professional credentialing go than some people earn in a lifetime. I let it go. I was told repeatedly that if I didn’t burn my professional bridges, I would never be successful in MK.

Think about that.

I listened and believed that advice. Did I say I had a couple of advanced degrees and around 18 initials after my name? Did I remind you that I was no spring chicken so naiveté could not be used as an excuse? I was a lifer. I was NSD material. You should see the plans I had for my family. My dream house. My fantastic life, just for doing my job by offering this opportunity to other women who “got it.”

Wanna talk about financial ruin? I am the poster child for bad choices. You know that line, “personal debt is bad, business debt is good?” I was told that so often, I ended up believing it. Wanna talk about classic symptoms of depression? You know the one when you wake up at 4 AM and you can’t breathe because you are so scared? When you check your limit on your credit cards to see if you have enough on at least one for groceries?

The lesson here is that debt is debt. It doesn’t matter if it’s a deduction or not. It is debt, and you know what? The creditors want their money. Lesson here: great credit gives you huge amounts on credit cards… I had two that had a $30,000 limit. In hindsight, I should have thrown up and shredded them. I had more than two though, I had more than I care to admit. I had great credit. Had is the operative word here. It took me years to rebuild. And can I just say how much I like that little thingy on my shredder that is made for credit cards? Way cool.

I am not a stupid woman, and I listened to people I trusted and thought I loved and would “do life with” for years. I didn’t listen to the people who were trying to reach me with concern; I perceived them as negative and as “icking on my wow.” I beat myself up continually for not being good enough, not working hard enough, not believing enough, not having a high enough deserve level, not trusting God, not following His plan for me, not talking to enough sharp women, not doing all I could do to motivate my unit, not believing in myself. I saw women who were like me and they were successful and I wasn’t. And it was all my fault.

Mary Kay was my life. I just needed more time. I needed quality recruits. Everyone who started a MK business would not succeed without $3,600 in initial inventory. All newbies had to become red jackets within the first month, and then move up the career path as quickly as possible. All I needed was a plan, and if nothing else, MK has the plan. 1000 days to NSD.

Except it wasn’t happening. And then, I heard a rumor about a director in my state who was KICKED OUT OF MARY KAY. OMG. I googled her name and read the newspaper article and comments. She cheated. And got caught. One thing lead to another, and I googled “Negative Mary Kay” expecting nothing, because I was told repeatedly there was nothing negative about MK on the internet, and started reading Mary Kay Sucks AKA Pink Truth. And the rest, as they say, was history.

I read my story, and I hadn’t written it yet. I thought I was the only one. I learned I was one of many. Brave souls were here who were wiling to be honest and lay it all out for me and the others who found the site. I was going to learn from their mistakes and do it correctly. I learned that was not possible. I can’t tell you how devastated and betrayed I felt. The death of my MK dream felt like a real death. I worked my way out of MK fairly quickly, fairly ineffectively and really embarrassing publicly.

So, two plus years out later, how is it? Peaceful, prosperous, and wonderful. I learned good things from MK and have incorporated them into my life, and the bad stuff is gone. I am amazed that a few of my director (former best) friends are STILL playing this game that cannot be won. They are still driving “free” cars, although they have co-pays. They are not making money. There haven’t been star orders in a long time. Newbies are buying showcases without initial orders. I can’t remember the last time one of them reached the end of the month with an order or two on hold due to a credit card denial. They are all turning the corner anytime, and looking ahead at their best month/year EVER. Our wanna be NSD is too old now to get it wrapped up. She has no paid health insurance and at 60-something has no retirement. She’s gone from exec to senior sales director. And is stuck there. These women are waiting and praying for the cream to rise from skim milk.

And that, dear newbie (and seasoned consultants who “accidentally stumbled onto this site”) is the way it is. We have a saying around these parts,” When you are ready, you will find us.” It’s a great site, so much information, and you will read your story YOU haven’t written on here, too. Why are the people who are out of MK hang around on here? Our critics say that we can’t move on. We know different. We stay because our stories have helped others, and PT gives us the opportunity to present the same play to a new audience every day. BTW *wave to MK corporate* Think about doing something that will actually help the sales force.

And hear my heart, consultants—-you do NOT need to order in June! It’s all about someone else, it’s not about what YOU need. Seriously.